US arrests two alleged leaders of online extremist 764 group

Two men have been arrested and accused of forcing children to produce “degrading and explicit content under threat and manipulation” as leaders of the global online extremist network known as 764.

Leonidas “War” Varagiannis, 21, and Prasan “Trippy” Nepal, 20, are both in U.S. custody and face life in prison if convicted of their alleged crimes, the Department of Justice said in a Tuesday news release. Varagiannis, a U.S. citizen, was arrested this week in Greece, and Nepal was apprehended April 22 in North Carolina.

The two suspects were prominent members of the network, leading a “core subgroup” known as 764 Inferno that “facilitated the grooming, manipulation, and extortion of minors” for the production of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), the DOJ said.

An affidavit unsealed in Washington, D.C., alleges that Varagiannis and Nepal “targeted vulnerable children online, coercing them into producing degrading and explicit content under threat and manipulation. This content includes ‘cut signs’ and ‘blood signs’ through which young minors would cut symbols into their bodies.” 

The content was compiled in digital “Lorebooks” that 764 members worldwide traded and used to recruit new members or maintain their status within the network, the DOJ said.

Investigations have shown 764 — which the FBI tracks as a nihilistic violent extremist (NVE) network — is part of a broader child exploitation ecosystem generally known as “the Com.” The cybercrime group Scattered Spider is also linked to the Com.

Varagiannis and Nepal exploited at least eight minors, the department said, some as young as 13. Both had “core leadership roles” from late 2020 until their arrest, the DOJ said.

“These defendants are accused of orchestrating one of the most heinous online child exploitation enterprises we have ever encountered — a network built on terror, abuse, and the deliberate targeting of children,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi in the news release.

The rise of 764 has been well documented, with Wired and other news organizations reporting in 2024 that the network is “hiding in plain sight” on popular online gaming platforms and messaging apps. 

The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation noted earlier this year that global law enforcement is often struggling to keep up with the threat. The Times reported in March that the group was gaining traction in the United Kingdom.

U.S. authorities have made multiple other arrests of alleged 764 participants. A Florida teenager was sentenced to about seven years in prison in March for possessing CSAM.

U.S. Air Force investigators warned earlier this month that young military recruits and members of military families could be vulnerable to the group.